The Importance of Timing Part II

You guys...YOU GUYS. You all KNOW how much I LOVE all of Jojo Moyes books, right?! So imagine my surprise (more like utter shock) when the amazing Jaime over at Fiction Fare made me aware of a signing that was taking place no more than 20 minutes from where I'm living in San Diego. OH MY GOSH LET THE FREAK OUT BEGIN. Never in my life did I think I would ever have the opportunity to meet her because she is legit one of my all-time favorite authors. Her books touch me on a level that is always personal in some way no matter what the story is. Her stories are magic and she weaves the ordinary into the extraordinary and I cannot ever get enough of her books.

SO! I wanted to do a fun recap of the event at Warwick's Bookstore in La Jolla, California and give a quick and dirty break down of some of the fun facts I learned about Jojo Moyes. Oh, and in case you were wondering...her accent is absolutely lovely and she is so kind in real life. Really. 

Fun Facts I Learned About Jojo Moyes

Why did she write ONE PLUS ONE? 

Reason 1: She wanted to write a story about a good mother. She said literature has too many bad examples or they treat mothers horribly. Such as fairy tales (The Moms are always dead), Harry Potter (Harry's Mom is dead), The Goldfinch (The Mom is dead), and Pride and Prejudice (the Mom in meddling). 

Reason 2: She also wanted to write a "dirty, sexy, funny, great road trip story." Direct quote. I absolutely loved this because the words dirty and sexy to describe a road trip makes the story sound illicit...then you realize they have two children and a big, dirty dog with them...maybe THAT'S why dirty was an adjective...

She Listens To Input From Her Fans

MILD SPOILER ALERT FOR ONE PLUS ONE

When debating the fate of Norman, she tweeted wondering if she should kill the dog and the overwhelming response from Twitter the next morning was NO…she found it ironic that nobody cares when she kills a human (save one human) but they all care about the dogs. In fact, she once got an email from a reader stating she would never read her books again for the demise of a dog in SHIP OF BRIDES (she promises that isn't a spoiler) 

Her Inspiration For ME BEFORE YOU?

She has personal experience with the question of quality of life thus pushing her to write ME BEFORE YOU and a young athlete recently had befallen a life-changing injury and opted for physician-assisted suicide.

How did she write MBY?

She said ME BEFORE YOU was the easiest book she ever wrote. 

I love that.

Will (see what I did there?) there be more MBY?

Yes, kinda! It's going to be a movie!!! AND it had a female director AND producer AND A-list actors reading for the role of Will...EEP!

Where Did the Story for THE GIRL YOU LEFT BEHIND Came From

The Girl You Left Behind was inspired by a true story of an American reporter who was asked to watch over  a warehouse that contained 1/3 of Europe's stolen art during the liberation of Dachau. So that part in the book? True story.

The Ending of an Era?

She wanted to write The Last Letter To Your Lover because a younger friend or family member (can't remember) never received a love letter and she thought her generation might be the last of the receiver of love letters 

True Life Inspiration...

Jojo says she gets up at 6 am to write every morning...her husband wakes up at 5:55 am every morning to make her coffee, prop her head behind a pillow, and plop her computer on her lap…if that isn’t true love…no wonder she writes such great love stories. 

My favorite fact of the night AND the reason why I absolutely love all her books?

She could get a novel out of any human being she talked for a short amount of time. She says that we all have a story to tell...isn't that just lovely? Ordinary into extraordinary, what did I say?

Seriously though, this was one of the best nights ever and such an amazing event. It was well-organized and just such a great signing. I'm not lying when I say Jojo Moyes is such a nice person to meet and it was an amazing experience to tell her in person how much her books mean to me...even if I was spazzing...just a little. Thank you so incredibly much to Warwick's the event and I can't wait to come back for some more books :)

If you haven't read any of her books yet (what in the actual hell are you waiting for?)
don't forget to check out my VIP reviews for...

The Last Letter To Your Lover
Me Before You
One Plus One
The Girl You Left Behind